Adirondack Rose
by DancingKitten16
Summary: /Everyone aspires to be Amber Millington. Daddy's girl. Rich. Beautiful. She was like fancy pink piping on the edge of a cake. No, she was more like the pretty fondant rose./ Amber has the perfect life. But when the house takes a trip, will the REAL Amber Millington finally be exposed? Amfie, Fabina, Peddie and Jara. Rated K unless it changes... Summary will change
1. Welcome to Amber Millington's Life

**Alrightie! This is my first story on here. It's about a trip…. That Anubis House goes on… But to find out where they have to play a little game. Muahaha… It will be mostly in 3****rd**** person. It will focus on Amber. I don't usually write about Amber, but for some reason she's easy to write for me and she's easy to begin a story with. I hate starting stories…. Its so awkward. Just like, "Uhm… Blah blah." Then you get to the good part finally. It's hard to explain…**

**Disclaimer: Dancing Kitten 16 does not own House of Anubis. But she wishes she does. **

Amber Millington stood at her locker, taking out the books she would need for drama class and free period. _I'll need my Fabina scrapbook and photos, and magazines,_ _and…. _

"Don't forget your play script this time, Amber!" Nina called as she left her locker and began down the hall. _Ah, yes, my play script!_ Amber snatched the tiny booklet and shut her locker.

She walked down the hall confidently in her school uniform, her luscious blonde locks French braided, top-brand, designer make-up blending in perfectly with her skin tone. Everyone aspires to be Amber Millington. Daddy's girl. Rich. Beautiful. She was like fancy pink piping on the edge of a cake. No, she was more like the pretty fondant rose. Everybody wanted a slice of her.

She strutted into the drama room and took a seat next to her boyfriend, Alfie Lewis. "Hi beau." She said, setting her books down on the table in front of them.

"Hey, Ambs. Guess what?" Alfie asked, holding his hands behind his back.

"What?" Amber asked. _Did he make me a heart shaped banana sandwich again? Ugh, that was so disgusting…_ Amber cringed.

Alfie put his hands in front of him, revealing a single crisp, fresh pink rose. "I got it for you!" He smiled at his accomplishment. "It hurt to take the thorns out." He shuddered, thinking of his thorn-infested hands from earlier.

"Oh Alfie! Thank you!" She planted a little kiss on his right cheek. He grinned widely. He loved Amber's kisses: soft and delicate, yet as vibrant as fireworks.

Just then, Mr. Winkler walked in like always. In his hands he held the play script. _Good thing Nina reminded me to bring it,_ Amber thought.

"Hello, class. Today I have an announcement," Mr. Winkler said. Immediately everyone began to buzz over the announcement. What was it?

_Maybe a new student? _Mara and Joy thought.

_Was there a project due today?_ Alfie and Jerome worried.

_Hmm, I think he's going to give us a project._ Nina and Fabian looked at each other and nodded.

_UGH, OH MY GOD, TELL US ALREADY!_ Patricia and Eddie screamed silently in their minds.

Amber wasn't paying much attention. She was examining her perfect French tips, making sure each and every edge was round, making sure there were no air bubbles in the dried white polish, making sure-

"We will be going on a class trip," Mr. Winkler announced. _OK, um, where?_ Amber thought, rolling her eyes.

"We will be going on a class trip," Mr. Winkler continued, "but not as a class."

_What? Is that even possible? How can we go on a class trip if we're not going as a class? Why even call it a class trip then? Just save the time and call it a trip. Jeez Mr. Winkler, jeez!_

Apparently the rest of the class was just as confused as Amber. They had begun to silently whisper among themselves. "I wonder what he means?" "Is that even logical?" "Wait… so where are we going?"

"Let me rephrase that. Everybody in here will go on a trip, with adult supervision, in a group of 9- not counting the supervisors- to a location that will be revealed later. Now, if everyone from your house is in this class right now, please stand up." Mr. Winkler said. Mara stood up first, then Nina and Fabian, then Eddie and Patricia, then Joy, then Jerome and Alfie, and then Amber.

"Perfect. Anubis House residents, you will go as a group. Trudy will be your supervisor. To find out where you are going, you will go on a scavenger hunt. Trudy has your list. You will be excused from the rest of your school day for the hunt and packing. You leave tomorrow at 3 for Heathrow Airport. Your flight leaves at 6 AM." Anubis House was already out the door.

Amber was struggling to keep up with her friends in her high heels. Eventually, she took them off and sped in front of her friends, her pale fingers undoing her braid, letting the wind fly through her hair. She felt the Earth between her toes. She felt free, and she loved it. But, a girl of her high standard cannot go around barefoot and free. No, she must be poised and civilized at all times. Amber reminded herself this, the fun draining out of her. She slowed down.

She put on her heels again and conducted banter with Nina and Patricia. You know, Amber Millington isn't so dumb. She is really smart, but she can't let anybody know. Super smart people never seem to have boyfriends. Except for Nina, but Fabian wasn't exactly Amber's type of boyfriend.

When the large group reached the house, they all burst in and began to look for Trudy. Alfie found her first. She was in the kitchen, polishing dishes. She gladly handed over a pile of scavenger hunt lists she had on the counter.

_Anubis House Scavenger Hunt List_

_All of the items on this list have something to do with your vacation destination. All of the items will be hidden IN Anubis House._

_1. A pair of skis_

_2. A Northern Yellow Spotted Turtle shell_

_3. A map of New York_

_4. A kayaking oar_

_5. A cotton-candy flavored candy stick_

_6. A bottle of sunscreen_

_7. A golf ball_

_8. A hiking backpack_

_9. A walking stick (not the bug, an actual stick)_

_10. A packet of hot chocolate_

_When you finish, you have to use the items to figure out where you are going. When you think you know, bring the items to Trudy. After 5 tries Trudy will reveal your destination._

Amber studied the list for a moment. Suddenly, everyone began to run in different directions, searching for the items. Confused, Amber looked around and followed Nina up into their room. Nothing at ALL seemed out of place.

From what Amber saw, it was going to be a LONG day.

**Wrap! Sorry it's a little short, I got lazy. Puah.**

**-DancingKitten16**


	2. The Hunt and The Reveal

**Sorry this chapter is so late… I got overwhelmed between dance and the quarterlies and hardly had time to write, but here it is. It's a little short, but I'll probably start typing the next chapter write away, which will hopefully be up by Wednesday. **

"Alright, so Patricia found the packet of hot chocolate in the shower, Alfie found the turtle shell under the sink, Mara found the stick on top of the curtains, Fabian found the golf ball in the washing machine, and I found the map of New York in my pillowcase. So all we need is the hiking backpack, the sunscreen, the oar, the candy stick, and the skis," Nina read off the list.

Amber sighed, sitting on her bed. _3 hours searching and we're only halfway done?_ She threw her head back in frustration. This scavenger hunt was definitely not the most enjoyable thing she'd ever done. When would it be over?

"AHA!" Amber could hear Jerome yelling down the hall. "I FOUND THE SUNSCREEN!"

Amber trudged to the hallway, where Jerome was triumphantly holding a pink bottle of sun block. She gave him a look then proceeded downstairs to the common room, where she promptly plopped on the couch.

_How much longer is this going to take?_ She wondered.

"Maybe a couple hours." Mara said while searching the fruit bowl on the dining table. Amber smacked her hand over her mouth. "Did I say that out loud?" She asked. _I really need to work on my mind- mouth control._

Mara just laughed. Suddenly, her eyes widened. "I found the backpack!" She yelled. She pulled the orange backpack out from under the oranges in the bowl. "Just the oar, the candy stick, and the skis now."

"UGH!" Amber yelled, throwing herself back on the couch. This was _TORTURE_! Amber would so much rather be shopping for new shoes. Alfie and Jerome had spilt spaghetti sauce on her favorite blue heels at dinner a few nights ago.

"Oh Amber," Mara shook her head and laughed as she hopped out of the room. Amber sighed and sat up.

"You know how I feel." Amber looked at the stuffed crocodile sitting on the table. Suddenly, she spotted a pink stick poking out of his mouth. _Could it be…_ She pulled on the stick and it fell out of the croc's mouth. _YES!_

"CANDY STICK! I FOUND THE CANDY STICK!" She screamed. She even got up and did a little dance. Just the oar and the skis!  
The house came running into the room, Alfie running too fast and evidently running into the hard glass window. It didn't break, but a large wooden oar fell from the top of the curtains. "Yay," Alfie said woozily, "I found the oar."

_Only the skis, Amber. You only have to find the skis. Then you can go. _Amber said to herself as she searched for the skis with newly found motivation. Suddenly, Joy called from the kitchen. "I found the skis!" _OH MY GOSH OH MY GOSH OH MY GOSHHHH!_

Everyone bolted into the kitchen and crowded around Joy, who had found the skis when she was getting a snack from the fridge. "They were just standing up on the side," Joy said. _We can FINALLY leave._

"OK, now let's take all the clues and find out where we're going," Nina said, sitting in the living room. _Oh, yeah, right. Forgot about that…._ Amber sat next to Nina, sure that it would take just a few minutes. And it actually did, but only because Anubis House hastily came up with 5 possible locations, none of which were correct.

The first was Sweden. Alfie came up with it because of the skis. Next was NYC, Amber's idea, supported by the map of NY. Amber also though up LA because of the sunscreen. Jerome guessed the Galapagos, thinking _Hey, the Galapagos islands have turtles, right? _And lastly, Patricia sarcastically said she thought they were going to Antartica because of the hot cocoa.

"Okay then dearies, I guess I'll tell you." Trudy said as she finished folding laundry. She picked up the basket. "You are going to the Adirondack Mountains in New York. You'll be right next to Lake George."

Nina's eyes immediately lit up as she jumped off the couch. "Oh my goodness, seriously? I used to go up to Lake George every year when I was little!" She screamed. Her housemates intensely stared at Nina, surprised at her random outburst. "Oh… um…. Sorry." She stammered, blushing scarlet red.

"Wait, _mountains_?" Amber asked clearly unsatisfied with the destination. "You mean, with trees… and dirt…. And…" She gulped, "bugs."

"Amber, remember, you held the bugs last year. They can't hurt you. You have the power over the bugs." Nina whispered into Amber's ear, calming down the girl who was nearly crying. Amber took a deep breath and closed her eyes, opening them 10 seconds after.

"Come on, let's go pack," Nina said. Amber nodded and followed Nina up the stairs and into their room. Amber stared at her overflowing wardrobe blankly. _I have to pack this all up… In one night?_ Her jaw dropped in disbelief. _Good luck to me._

** Good luck to Amber indeed! OK, so this is some 150 words shorter than I'd like, and that's with the author's notes. I'll begin writing Chappie 3- Speaking of chap, my dog ate my chap stick so I need to buy more because now my lips are chapped. Ok… so bye **** And PLEASE REVIEW, it motivates me so much.**

**-DancingKitten16 loves babycats! **


	3. Packing and Planes

**Yay! Thanks for the reviews and favorites and follows! And Anna Bliss aka Ivy B, I used to have the strawberry sorbet Eos and it was SO AMAZING! My sister has the tangerine and won't let me use it (meanie) and my mom used to have the mint. (Not that I would use that anyway, I absolutely DESPISE all things mint related) Anyway, Chappie 3 is here! Enjoy!**

3:00 A.M.

It was 3:00 A.M. in Anubis House, and not a creature was stirring, except for Amber Millington and Alfie Lewis. Amber was just finishing up packing her bags for the Adirondacks, and Alfie, being the sweet, lovable man-child he is was helping her.

"And… That's…. The…. Last…. One….." Alfie struggled to zipper Amber's 9th suitcase. When he finally closed it, he plopped on Amber's bed, breathing heavily.

"Thanks beau!" Amber hopped onto the bed beside him and planted a kiss on his lips. She did really love Alfie, no matter how immature he was.

Alfie smiled. Suddenly, a million rings and dings and pings and bings were heard as everybody's alarms went off. Nina yawned and sat up, her eyes widening when she saw Amber and Alfie.

"You're up early. I thought we'd have to drag you out of bed!" She joked, swinging her legs onto the floor and into her blue kitty slippers. Amber's mouth was open, and her eyes filled with worry.

"Oh my gosh," She said, "I didn't even get to sleep! Now I'll get bags under my eyes, and dark circles, and wrinkles… Ewww!" She was on the edge of tears.

"Ambs, don't worry, you can sleep on the train and the plane." Alfie reassured her.

"What if I don't wake up at the right time and I get kidnapped?" Amber asked, giving Alfie a look that said 'Is that what you want?'

"I'll wake you up!" Alfie said, grabbing Amber's hand and shaking it dramatically. Amber giggled and pecked Alfie on the cheek. Alfie smiled. 2 kisses in less than 10 minutes? That had to be a new record.

At first, Amber had selected a pretty white dress and black heels for the trip, but Nina quickly handed her a pair of sweatpants, a tank top, and a sweatshirt, much to Amber's protest. The girls headed downstairs, where they found Trudy, who was holding a checklist and going maybe a little crazy.

"Good morning lovelies! Bring down your suit cases, the taxis will be here any minute." Trudy said. Alfie and Fabian suddenly appeared at the top of the staircase, Fabian easily rolling Nina's 2 suit cases and Alfie tripping over Amber's 9. Just as Fabian was off the stairs, Alfie came tumbling down, Amber's suitcases scattered all over the stair case.

"Alfie!" Amber yelled, running over to him. "Are you alright, beau?"

"Yeah… I'm fine.." Alfie stood up, trying to be strong. "Just gonna go walk it off… Just need to walk it off!" He bolted to the kitchen to get an ice pack.

Amber turned towards Nina and Fabian, who had just separated from a super romantic kiss. "Aww, I missed a Fabina moment. Today is not my day," Amber said, picking up her many suit cases.

Later that day, after the taxi rides to the airport, in which Amber slept, the students were all sitting in Gate B of the Heathrow Airport. Nina had her head on Fabian's shoulder. Fabian was reading some nerdy book. Patricia and Joy were playing Draw Something on their phones. Alfie and Jerome were at the arcade. Mara was studying, Trudy was eating a fruit salad, and Amber was looking around, bored. She began to wander around the gate area, peeking in the many coffee shops and tiny restaurants.

She returned to the boarding area holding a pack of watermelon gum and the latest fashion magazine. Alfie and Jerome had returned from their expedition to the arcade. Alfie vividly described their 'adventure' to Amber, who wasn't really listening. She sketched new fashion designs in her favorite sketchbook. _Hmm, it needs something else… Maybe some necklaces?_

"And then Jerome beat me in Super Racer 500, but I beat him in Snake Shooter 2000." Alfie finished his account of the ordeal. Amber nodded and said, "That sounds so cool," without looking up from her newest sketch. It was a white tank top with coral stretch pants and turquoise necklaces modeled on a fierce blonde woman.

"What's that?" Alfie asked. Amber shoved the sketchbook into her tote bag.

"No-Nothing," She lied. She didn't want people to know she was so artistic. It might expose the _true_ Amber Millington, and Amber definitely didn't want that. She quickly changed the subject. "Here, beau, I got you some gum!" Amber shoved the gum into Alfie's hand.

"Thanks Ambsies!" Alfie cheerily threw some gum in his mouth, forgetting all about Amber's sketches. Amber let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding in. _Phew._

"Passengers on Plane 5021, please begin the boarding process," A lady announced on the loudspeaker.

"That's us," Trudy announced. The kids made their way onto the plane, completely unaware of the hijinks that would ensue on it.

**Sorry it's a little short, I was going to make one really long chapter but my dad just called and I have to go to his house in like 5 minutes so I'll make another chappie there. Bye **

**-DancingKitten16**


	4. Adirondacks, Here I Am!

**OK, sorry it's been so long since I updated. I made this chapter EXTRA long so that you'd forgive me : ) And I added in a flashback. Am I forgiven?**

"OK, does everybody have a piece of gum?" Trudy asked, glancing at the students who were sitting around her. Everyone nodded, some people holding up their gum sticks, some people not even looking up from gossip magazines, and some people viciously shaking their head as they tried to get a new high score on Temple Run.

Amber gazed out the airplane window, observing the airport and its surroundings. She glanced into the large glass windows of the airport to see a little girl, about 6 years old, peering out the window. She was suddenly taken aback by returning memories.

_August 28__th__, 2006, Heathrow Airport, London, England. _

_ The little girl peers out the window, her bright blonde hair made into an intricate ballerina bun on the top of her head. She wore a light pink and white polka-dot dress, white stockings, and pink and white 2-inch wedges. Her Tinkerbelle carry-on bag is laid on a seat next to her father, a very respected and stately businessman. He watches his daughter as she points to the many colorful planes outside the window. _

_ The girl, Amber, hears the woman's strict voice come over the loudspeaker. Amber doesn't even try to understand the incomprehensible words the woman is saying. She just runs to her father with that look in her eyes that says, 'Daddy, what does she mean?' _

_ Mr. Millington closes his eyes, his stomach feeling as though it were tied in a million knots. He stands up, puts his hands on his daughter's shoulders, and crouches down to her height. He sighs, unable to explain the situation to his curious daughter._

_ "What is it, Daddy? Why are we here?" Amber's eyes grow wide. "Are we going to Disneyland again?" _

_ "No, Amber," The father sighs, seeing the disappointment in his daughter's crystal clear blue eyes. "Listen, you're going to go on that big plane." He pointed to a big white jet outside the window. "You're going to be just fine, OK? You're going to a school where you're going to meet new friends and have lots of fun." _

_ "But Daddy," The girl asks, "What about you?" _

_ "Amber," Her dad begins, already tearing up, "I have to stay here so I can go to work. But see that lady?" He points to the stewardess coming towards them, and Amber nods, crying silently. "She'll take care of you until you go on the bus to your new school. Kay?" _

_ "Kay," Amber nods, wiping her eyes. She wraps her fingers around the stewardess's and turns to leave. Halfway to the boarding terminal, she turns and looks to her dad. She runs back to him, the tears flowing faster now. _

_ "I love you Daddy," She hugs him one last time._

_ "I love you too, angel." _

_(End of Flashback)_

It was so long ago, and yet Amber remembered the day so vividly. The tears, hot and fast, dripping down her cheeks. Her heart felt as if it weighed a thousand pounds. Her stomach was twisted in ways that made Amber sick. That was her first day at Anubis, and she would never forget it.

_That was a long time ago, Amber. Move on._ There it was. That little voice inside of her, telling her constantly, you're not good enough, you're not pretty enough, nobody likes you. Amber hated the voice, but she couldn't do anything about it. Or at least, that's how she felt.

She didn't turn her head away from the window to learn the emergency rules. She didn't notice when the plane took off. She just snuggled up against the window, thinking silently as she gazed out the window, seeing the fluffy white clouds on the clear blue sky. It looked as perfect as a painting.

Alfie, who was sitting next to Amber, and Jerome in the aisle seat, was quickly asleep. Jerome had gone to the bathroom when Amber finally glanced over at Nina and Fabian in the other row. Fabian's arm was around Nina's shoulder, holding her hand. It was so romantic…

_Ware liefde._ Amber thought. She had learned a little Dutch when she'd visited the Netherlands one October on a field trip in Year 5. _True love._ Amber pondered over this subject.

Did Amber and Alfie have true love? What was true love, anyway? It was things like this that puzzled Amber. She loved Alfie with all of her heart. Is that what true love was? Amber then realized that nobody would ever have true love because nobody knew what true love was, truly.

Confused, worn out, and tired, she snuggled up against the window of the airplane. She had almost drifted off to sleep when the stewardess came around to take orders for snacks and drinks. Amber quickly ordered a fruit cup and lemon water, while Alfie got some Pringles and a Sprite.

"Trudy, how far away are we from the airport?" Amber asked as she popped a strawberry slice into her mouth.

"Not far, dearie. We'll be landing any time now," Trudy announced. Mara, who was practically buried in the map of New York, glanced up.

"Trudy, what airport are we landing at again? I'm trying to calculate the travel time we will spend in our bus by the time we land at the airport, minus the amount of calculated traffic due to rush hours and break time," Mara trailed off, nobody understanding what she was saying.

"We'll be landing at JFK in NYC, Mara," Trudy replied kindly. Amber's eyes grew wide.

"NYC, as in, New York City?!" She asked, not able to believe what she was hearing. Trudy slightly grinned at Amber's giddiness as she nodded yes.

_NEW YORK CITY!_ Amber screamed in her head. That was the best city ever! All the Charlotte Russe stores, all the Forever 21s… Amber almost fainted. Then, quite sadly, she realized that she wouldn't have time to visit the shops, just stare at them through the bus windows. That put a small damper on her mood, but she distracted herself with some music on her iPod.

After the plane had landed, Amber rushed to baggage claim along with the other students to locate her suitcases. Then, the large group boarded their bus, which had a small bathroom in the back and dark blue seats. Trudy sat in the front seat, right behind the bus driver. Nina, Amber, and Fabian crowded into the back seats. Alfie and Jerome plotted a prank on Patricia and Eddie, the lovebirds who were sitting in front of them.

Amber was dismayed when the bus immediately turned out of NYC, not passing one designer shop. Soon, the Anubis kids were surrounded by the country; large trees, green pastures, and colorful wildflowers. But the most breath-taking feature of this vast landscape was the distant mountains, rising into the sky in the distance. Amber gazed up at them, wowed by their superior beauty.

Fabian had gone to sit with Eddie, leaving just Nina and Amber in the back. The two girls giggled and gossiped, excited to reach their destination.

"Did Trudy tell you what we're going to do up there? Cause she didn't tell me, and I _need_ to know," Amber stated. Amber shook her head, curious as to just what you could even do in the mountains. Certainly not designer brand shopping…. Nina laughed, reading her friend's thoughts.

"Oh Amber," Nina sighed. "We're not going shopping!" She rolled her eyes as her and Amber erupted into fits of giggles. They kept on giggling until suddenly, the bus pulled into a dirt driveway trimmed off with rocks. Amber stared out the window, not believing what she was seeing.

There was a charming cabin, all wooden and cute, trimmed with matching green shutters and a roof. The Anubis gang piled off the bus, still staring at the adorable abode as the bus driver drove away. Trudy led the kids up onto the small little porch, where she reached under the mat, pulled out a pretty brass key, and opened the door.

The sight was breath-taking. The walls were all wood. There was a cozy living room, a homey little dining area, and a pretty kitchen that Trudy couldn't wait to cook in. The Anubis kids ran through the hallway, opening several doors, competing to see who would find the best bedroom. Trudy had already stated that only boys could room with boys and girls would room with girls. Amber and Nina had decided to be roomies. By the time they had hauled all of Amber's heavy, jam-packed suitcases up the porch steps and into the living room, there was only one bedroom left. **(If you've seen Anubis en de Wraak van Arghus, think of the scene where they first come into the house and Nina and Amber are knocking on everyone's doors and heaving Amber's suitcase upstairs.)**

It was the smallest one, lonely at the end of the long hallway. Nina slowly creaked the door open. The two girls gasped at what they saw. _How could nobody have picked this bedroom? It's perfect!_ Amber loved it.

The small but quaint bedroom was cozy, not suffocating. There was a moderate sized closet, a dresser and a wardrobe, a nightstand, and a pair of bunk beds. The beds were magnificent, made of wood that had been cut from the woods surrounding the cabin, with beautiful blue blankets with patterns of evergreens, bears, and flowers hand sewn on. Amber wished she could sleep on the top, but Trudy made Amber sleep on the bottom bunk due to her 'sleepwalking problem.'

In the same hallway slept the boys, Fabian and Eddie in one room, Jerome and Alfie in the other. There was a loft in the living room that had two beds which Mara and Joy would make home. Next to the loft was a hallway leading to the master bedroom, which Trudy had claimed. And then there was the playroom downstairs, which had a wonderful fold-out couch Patricia would sleep on.

There was an elevated deck leading off from the living room, overlooking the backyard trimmed with 5-feet boulders. Flowers peeked out of the ground as the plain grass made way into the lush, green, mossy woods. To Amber, it seemed that the woods seemed to have some kind of mystery about them, or it may have just been some kind of weird aura. Whatever it was, Amber was dying to find out.

It was now 11:00 P.M. Amber was pooped. She changed into her PJs and snuggled up in bed, eventually falling asleep. But she never expected what would happen to her next.

**Dun dun dun! Before you guys stop reading, I need to ask you:**

**Should I put Willow and KT in this story? **

**I think I'll probably incorporate Willow somehow, but not KT because she downright annoys me with all her similarities to Nina.**

**-DancingKitten16**


	5. Creeper Bear!

**I just typed this chappie up. 2 updates in 2 days? I'M GOING CRAZZYYY!**

It was the middle of the night when Amber opened her eyes, expecting the smell of Trudy's delicious pancakes to be flowing through the air, for the sunlight to be streaming in through the blinds, for Trudy to be gently tapping her on the shoulder, saying, "Wake up, sweetheart, breakfast is ready."

Instead, she got Nina shaking her awake, sweating profusely, and whispering something about some bear eating garbage. Well, the garbage part of that statement wasn't very appealing to Amber, but as soon as she heard the word bear, she sat up straight in bed.

"Bear? What bear? What? Is it inside? Is it going to kill me? What is going on?" Amber asked in a panic. Nina held her finger to her lips as if to say 'Be quiet!' Amber clamped her hand over her mouth, gulped, and nodded, as if to say, 'OK, I get it.' Nina began to whisper again.

"There is a bear outside. It's eating the garbage. I don't know what to do! Do we wake Trudy up, or call 911, or just wait for it to leave?" Nina asked, clearly confused. Amber peeked out the window as Nina explained the situation, and sure enough, a big fat brown bear had knocked over the garbage can and was now eating the trash inside.

"We can't just leave it there! It will just stay! We have to chase it away!" Amber said, turning to face Nina again.

"Ok, Ok, fine. I'll go… um…. Wake up Fabian! He'll know what to do, right?" Neither of the girls was very convinced. They tip toed into Fabian and Eddie's room. Amber stayed by the door while Nina crept over to Fabian and began to tap on his shoulder. Slowly, Fabian began to wake up.

"Nina? What's going on? It's the middle of the night. Is there something wrong? What's wrong?" He sat up in bed, instantly in ultra-protective boyfriend mode. _Aww, Fabina…_ Amber sighed, smiling at Fabian's overprotectiveness.

"Fabian, there's a bear outside, and it's eating our trash. We need to chase it away. We were hoping you'd know how to," Nina said, explaining the situation. Fabian was now standing; Nina and he walking back over to Amber.

"Could we just… throw stuff at it?" Fabian suggested, shrugging his shoulders. "Maybe a magazine or something?"

"That's a good idea. There are a bunch of old fishing magazines in the living room. We'll use one of them," Nina said. Fabian and Amber nodded. The trio found a stack of magazines, then sat down and hatched a plan.

"OK, so we'll just go outside and chuck this magazines at the bear, and then he'll run away in fear. Right?" Nina asked.

"No way! I am not going outside with a bear. Ever!" Amber widened her eyes.

"Fine, me and Nina will go," Fabian said. It was decided. Amber would hold the door open as Fabian and Nina threw fishing magazines at the bear.

"OK. 3, 2, 1, GO!" Amber swung the door open. Nina and Fabian jumped out, sending magazines flying toward the bear. None of the tiny paper booklets actually hit the bear, or even came close to it, but it was enough to scare the mammal away. The bear went running into the woods.

"YES!" Nina and Amber high-fived. Fabian held his hand up expectantly.

"What, don't I get a high five?" Fabian asked.

"You get a three. Maximum," Amber said as she took her index, middle, and ring fingers and pushed them against Fabian's sweaty hand. The trio of students laughed as they returned to bed, sleeping until daylight broke.

_Morning._

Amber was awoken not so gently by Nina's annoying alarm clock. Beep, beep, beep! It screamed.

"Nina, shut the stupid alarm clock off!" Amber groaned into her pillow. She heard Nina swat at the alarm, then climb down and crouch next to Amber.

"Sorry," She smiled. Amber looked at her friend and burst into giggles. She slammed a throw pillow into her friend's face. Nina fell backwards, landing on the ground. The girls laughed as they made their way to the breakfast table.

"Mmm, pancakes," Amber said as she sat down between Patricia and Nina. She breathed in, inhaling the delicious scent of Trudy's 'big day breakfast' as she called it; fluffy pancakes with melting butter and actual maple syrup, crispy bacon, soft biscuits, and yummy fruits.

"So, Trudy, what's the schedule for today?" Jerome asked while smoothing butter on a biscuit.

"Well, I was thinking we could maybe go down to Lake George. It's only a couple minutes from here. We can swim, kayak, canoe, even paddleboat," Trudy said while cooking more bacon.

That sounded nice. A sunny day at the beach, so peaceful, so quiet, so calm, just sitting in a chair, reading a new fashion magazine or sketching new designs while tanning in the bright sun.

The kids all grabbed their beach bags, loaded themselves with sunscreen, and changed into swimsuits. Amber helped Nina pick out a cute bikini and sundress. Nina let Amber borrow her new romper. The two girls were ready in no time. The kids all loaded into Trudy's rental van, which had arrived this morning.

"We're here!" Trudy cheered happily as she pulled into a sandy beach area. There was a small, wooden playground with 2 yellow swings, a rock wall, a ladder, a green slide, and a green tarp roof. There were about 14 white plastic lounge chairs spread out around the playground along with 3 tables, 2 small and 1 long. There were a few small kayaks, canoes, and paddleboats lining the left side of the beach. A white lifeguard stand sat lonely and abandoned.

Amber looked at the water. It was dark blue, slowly splashing up against the sands. In the middle of the lake, there was a floating dock that was painted maroon red. The lake went on for a long time. Amber couldn't even see the end. All she could focus on was the millions of dragonflies buzzing atop the water.

"Bugs," Amber gulped quietly. Nina, who was sitting next to her, heard her and took her hand.

"Amber, you can do this. You beat the bugs last year, you can do it again. Remember? You touched the bug and it didn't hurt you. It was a nice bug. Bugs are nice. It's okay. You can do it," Nina reassured her friend. Amber inhaled and exhaled. _I got this._

The kids set up their stuff at the long table. Nobody else was at the beach, just them. Soon enough, after the kids had practically poured bug spray on each other, they were splashing into the water, racing to the dock, Alfie in the lead. However, Amber held back a little. Nina noticed her friend wasn't racing and swam back to shore.

"Amber, come on, go in the water. You can do it," Nina coaxed Amber, inch by inch, closer into the water. _I can do this, I can do this…_

As soon as Amber's feet hit the slippery, gooey, muddy bottom of the water, she screamed. "Nina, it's too muddy! EEEWWWW!"

"Amber, you can do it. You can do it," Nina repeated. Amber took some more deep breaths and steeped deeper into the water. _I can do it, I can do it. _

It did take a while, but eventually, Amber was climbing up on the floating dock to meet the rest of her friends. They were all taking turned, jumping or flipping off the dock and into the water. Everyone, even Amber, was having a good time.

Later on, Patricia and Eddie were both trying to tackle each other underwater, Nina, Fabian, Joy, Alfie, and Jerome were playing Marco Polo, and Mara, Joy, and Amber were all tanning and trading celebrity gossip. It was quite a surprise when a girl with red hair tied back in a high ponytail came skipping right to the lounge chair next to Amber. She set down her stuff and began to read a magazine.

"Hello there!" She smiled at Amber, Joy, and Mara. "I'm Willow Jenks, nice to meet you!" She held out her hand, which Amber hesitantly shook.

"I'm Amber," Amber replied, "And this is Mara. That's Joy." She pointed to her friends.

"Oh silly, I already know who you are! I live in the cabin across the street!" Willow laughed.

"Uh… okay…" Amber said, a little creeped out by Willow. _Stalker much?_

"Did you see that bear last night? Oh, of course you did, you chased it away, silly me!" Willow giggled. Amber was seriously scared of Willow now. Should she even be near someone so stalker-ish? You never know, Willow could steal her identity!

"Well," Willow dug into her pink beach bag, "I got a new fashion magazine, but the clerk said they were 2 for 1, so I got an extra. Would you like to read it?" Willow handed Amber the latest copy of her favorite magazine.

Suddenly, Amber liked Willow a lot more than she had before.

**And then there was Willow! I don't think I'll include KT, but Willow just fit in right there as the stalker-ish next-door neighbor. Also, a Polyvore link to my sets is on the bottom of my profile. So view them. **

**-DancingKitten16**


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